By Aamir Latif
KARAC, Pakistan (AA): At least four people were killed and 27 others, including 24 policemen, were injured when a suspected suicide bomber rammed his explosive-laden car into a police vehicle in southwest Pakistan on Wednesday morning, officials and local media said .
The suspect bomber, who acted alone, targeted a truck carrying police personnel for the security of anti-polio vaccinators in a suburban locality of Quetta, the capital of southwestern Balochistan province, which borders neighboring Afghanistan and Iran, Abdul Haq Umrani, the city chief told reporters.
A video provided by the police and aired on local TV channels showed a white car colliding head-on with the truck, resulting in a massive explosion.
The truck could be seen toppling and falling into a ditch.
Police said at least 25 kilograms of the explosive material was used in the blast
A policeman and three civilians were killed, the local Dawn newspaper reported, citing Dr. Waseem Baig, media coordinator for the Balochistan Health Department, who added that some of the injured are in critical condition.
Images aired on local broadcaster Geo News showed rescue and security personnel shifting the bodies and injured into the honking ambulances, which transported them to a local hospital.
At least three damaged vehicles were also seen on the spot with blood-soaked shoes, helmets, pieces of clothes, and glasses strewn around.
The Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), a conglomerate of several militant groups operating in Pakistan, has claimed responsibility for the attack.
The outlawed group has long been involved in attacks on security forces and anti-polio vaccinators across the country.
The latest bombing took place just two days after the TTP announced the ending of a so-called cease-fire with the security forces and threatened to carry out fresh attacks.
Meanwhile, one man was killed and a security official was injured in an attack on a girls’ school in the Azam Warsak area of South Waziristan district on Thursday.
According to the district police, unknown militants opened fire from a nearby mountain during Parents’ Day celebrations at the Army Public School for Girls. The students, parents, staff and security personnel, who were present inside the school at the time of the attack, remained unhurt.
The deceased, identified as Masti Khan, was passing by the school when a bullet hit him, a police official said. The injured security official was shifted to the hospital.
As security forces retaliated, the attackers fled to the Pakistan-Afghanistan border area, an official said.
[Photo: Security personnel examine surroundings, when a suspected suicide bomber blew himself up near a police vehicle in Quetta, Pakistan on November 30, 2022. Photojournalist : Mazhar Chandio/AA]
